Finally
by Nature9000
Summary: Five years of separation and the only means of contact are letters to one another, both wish to see one another again, but journeys pull them farther apart. Will they ever be together again or will their hearts continue to break?


Finally

Disclaimer: I don't own Pokémon

A/N: I felt compelled to write a oneshot here, I hope you enjoy it.

-SO IT BEGINS-

Twenty year old Misty sat in the chair of her gym, her orange hair was at least slightly past her shoulders now. It had been about five years since she last saw Ash Ketchum, she wished desperately to see him once more, but that chance probably would never happen. Sure, she corresponded with him through letters, but that just wasn't enough for her. He talked a lot about the girls he met on his travel, May and Dawn, they were still traveling with him. Brock still hadn't met a girl as far as Ash would say.

"I wish you'd come home, Ash," Misty said as she closed her eyes. She heard someone ask what she had just said, she quickly opened her eyes and realized she had forgotten she was in the middle of a gym battle with another trainer. "I'm sorry, forgive me." She gave an exasperated sigh and looked toward her Gyarados. "Gyarados, use hyper beam." The Pokémon did as said and attacked its opponent, winning the match. "That was a good match, but you must train some more and then come battle again."

"I'll do that! Do you know why? I'm going to be the greatest Pokémon trainer ever!" Misty froze and gasped lightly. Her face grew soft as she closed her eyes and smiled, the way the kid talked sounded a lot like Ash. The kid left and Misty turned to head to another part of her gym, she stopped when she heard a noise. She narrowed her eyes and glanced to the side, she had been jumpy for the past week because she had seen Team Rocket in her gym the prior week. She quickly escorted them out by hitting them with a barrage of Pokémon.

_"I wonder if Ash will ever become the greatest trainer ever and if he'll really ever remember me…"_ She figured he probably wouldn't, he probably didn't even want to write letters to her but did so that he could continue being viewed as a good friend to her. For all she knew, he may be dating that Dawn girl. The thought that he was probably with another girl hurt her, it broke her heart. _"Not like he hasn't broken my heart before now anyway."_ Misty walked into another hall of her gym and spotted a flash of long red hair. "Not again…" She sighed and pulled out a pokeball. "Okay Jessie, I'm bored and I'm ticked, so come on out and let's get this over with." Jessie poked her head out and blinked as Misty shook her head.

"Hey, I was just leaving," Jessie said with a wide grin. Misty's hand pressed around the pokeball as she held her glare on the older woman. She had to wonder where James and Meowth were. "I mean, I was here because I wanted some advice, but I can see you're busy so I decided to go ahead and leave!"

"You wanted advice?" Misty raised her eyebrow and rolled her eyes, she was sure Jessie wanted something more than that. "That's why you were snooping around here last week. Look, I have my own problems to worry about so why don't you just get the hell out of my sight and leave me alone." Jessie tilted her head and stepped forward, wondering what Misty seemed so upset about. "I bet James is around here somewhere, at least he isn't going to leave you. He'll never leave you, and Meowth isn't going to leave you either. In fact, I bet you'll grow up and be happy with him."

"What?" Jessie's mouth opened slightly and she shifted her eyes toward the side, thinking about what it was Misty was really upset about. Then it clicked, who was the one guy that was always with Misty? The one kid that seemed to have more concern toward her than the older guy, it was Ash. "This isn't about the Pokémon anymore, is it?" Misty narrowed her eyes and felt her body start to shake. "This is about the b…Ash, is that it?" Misty froze at his name and closed her eyes, feeling the strain of tears fighting to leave her eyes.

"Don't mention him! I…It hurts to think about him, he probably doesn't care. He's probably having fun with that girl, Dawn, and doing who knows what with her." She lowered the ball and stared at the floor, her heart breaking the more she thought of Ash. "Every letter he sends me has less and less writing, I don't know how long I am going to be able to wait until he finally returns. He said he'd return home when he made it to number one…well it's been five years and he still hasn't reached it."

"Aw…You don't need to worry about that." Jessie decided to give Misty a friendly hug and let the girl weep into her clothes. "I bet he thinks of you every day." Jessie remembered well one time when James went to spy on the group, it was late at night and everyone was starting to go to bed. Ash was resting in a sleeping bag with his hands behind his head, Pikachu rested on top of his chest. Ash's eyes were open and staring up at the sky. After some time, James heard him mutter one word and then turn over to go to bed. He had been pretty sure the word Ash uttered was the name Misty. "Just believe you'll see him again, it'll happen if it is truly meant to be."

"It's just been so long, when will I not have to wait anymore?" It felt unusual to get comfort from someone who was an enemy, but at that time, neither cared nor did they assume their roles. Right now it was just the brokenhearted receiving comfort from an older and wiser woman. Though Jessie wasn't that wiser, but she did feel Misty's pain. She had been down that road once before, but it was an old story.

"He wants to be number one, right? He's number one in your heart, isn't he?" Misty sniffed and nodded her head, Jessie sighed and patted Misty on the back. "There may be nothing that you can do, but that's assuming you've tried anything. Have you asked him to come home?" She hadn't, she had never thought to tell Ash that. It was only because she saw how great his dream was and thought that she shouldn't prevent him from reaching his goal. "Do you think he should love his dream more than you?"

"I don't want to deny him the right of that, I love him so I refuse to tell him that I don't want him to go." Jessie's face softened as she smiled lightly and looked into Misty's eyes.

"You're toying with your own heart. Why deny what the heart wants? Maybe if you told him, he would stay with you. He may feel the same way, you never really know. You may not want to tear him away from his dream, but you shouldn't have to tear yourself away from your heart. Remember this, Pokémon may come and go, but true love comes once and only once."

"What if he doesn't feel the same? I can't just put myself in place to be hurt like that…" She looked downward and Jessie gave her another friendly hug, knowing full well that right now Misty just needed some comfort. Without a doubt, Misty wanted and needed to see Ash, but he was pretty far off. "I hear so many things from him in the line of women mostly. Like…I don't know, Dawn seems to care about him, as did May. I wouldn't be surprised if he's dated every girl that got close to him."

"Uh, I wouldn't say he's dated _every_ girl, or even _any_ girl. You never really know. Plus, that Dawn girl, I don't think she's his type, it seems she just can't keep up with him. Besides, it may be selfish, but don't you think Ash would rather someone who can keep up with and possibly keep pace in battle. I would think you two are almost equal as Pokémon trainers and fighters." Misty shrugged and Jessie patted her back. "Hey, just don't give up yet. I know you doubt some things right now, but if it is meant to be, then you will see him again." Misty sighed and took a step back.

"I don't know, maybe…but why are you here anyway?"

"Well if you must know the truth…" Jessie closed her eyes and chuckled. "I get the feeling James is going to be asking me a very important question." Her eyes beamed and Misty gave her a small smile. "You see, he's asked me to join him at the Spring dance festival and I wanted a good dress, the dresses you have at this gym are some of the best I've ever seen and I was kind of hoping you'd let me borrow one."

"_Borrow_ a dress, why would I let you do that? You may not ever return the dress…" She crossed her arms and closed her eyes, not sure if she really should trust Jessie. Of course, she didn't really care at the moment. "Actually, just pick out a dress and keep it, I've got plenty of them. My sisters make a new one and send it in almost all the time." Misty smiled and Jessie gave a quick squeal. She quickly covered her mouth and Misty laughed while gesturing for Jessie to follow her.

"I promise I'll pay you back somehow!" Misty closed her eyes and shrugged as the two walked into a large closet area. Jessie grinned and started looking around at all the dress items, trying to find the perfect one. Every now and then she would hold one up and ask if it looked good on her, Misty would tell her whether it went well with her or not. Finally they found a beautiful and elegant red dress that had a V neck and a cut on one side of the dress from the bottom. It was perfect.

-NEW SCENE-

Ash, Brock and Dawn were walking in between cities as they usually do, looking for any Pokémon they could capture. They came up to a small area with a lake nearby, so they chose to stop and rest for a while. Dawn released some of her Pokémon and let them swim in the lake while Brock moved over to another area and let his Pokémon out of their containers. Ash walked over to a small rock and sat next to it. He watched as Pikachu started running around with the others. Ash let out a small groan and stood up, he had a lot on his mind at the moment.

He walked into the nearby woods where it was quieter, he needed to rest but he couldn't rest where Dawn, Brock and all of the others were. It was then that he heard some voices, they were coming from a short walk away. He walked through the woods and moved some branches aside to see Team Rocket working on some large machine, it looked like another flying machine that would be used to attempt to steal Pikachu once more. He sighed and shook his head, wondering if they would ever give up.

"Come on James, we need this to work," Jessie exclaimed.

"Hey, have some patience," James said while narrowing his eyes and looking up from the machine. They had been trying to fix something that was broken, it was almost done. "Just a little more…" James turned the screwdriver one last time and sighed as he leaned back, everything was done. "Okay, now we have all we need, are you sure this will work?" They heard someone clearing their throat and turned to see Ash staring at them. His arms were crossed and a smirk was gracing his face.

"You two really need to learn to be more discreet," Ash said as he shook his head. He looked over at Jessie and gasped lightly, she wasn't wearing her usual uniform, she was wearing a dress that he'd seen Misty wearing once. It had to be the exact dress. He lowered his arm and his mouth opened slightly. "M-Misty…" He closed his eyes and growled lightly. "Where did you get that dress? I know that isn't yours…where did you get it!" He growled and stepped forward, growing angry and thinking that they stole from Misty. "If you took that dress from her…I swear…"

"Though I'd say it looks better on Jessie," James said as he looked toward Jessie and rubbed his chin. Ash shouted out and charged toward James, he clenched his fist and started to throw a punch. "I didn't mean it as an insult!" James quickly dodged Ash's blow and yelped slightly. "I just think that Jessie is prettier." Ash started to throw another punch and James quickly dodged to the side once more. "Yikes, you don't have to take offense to it!" Meowth shook his head and walked toward the entrance of the large machine, he looked over and saw a glimpse of yellow running toward them.

"Oh crap," He said while rolling his eyes and turning around. "Hey, you think you could finish the fight soon? I think Pikachu's heading this way." James nodded and quickly pulled a syringe from his pocket, Ash's eyes widened as James struck him in the arm. He screamed out and took a step back, he had no clue what James just hit him with. Meowth reached into the machine's door and pulled out what looked like a tranquilizer gun. "Okay, now just a bit closer…" Pikachu leapt into the air and started charging up, but Meowth shot him.

"Pikachu!" Ash shouted while running toward his Pokémon. He held out his arms and caught him. "Pikachu, hold on…" Ash narrowed his eyes and looked over at Team Rocket. "What the hell did you do!"

"We may as well get started," Jessie said while rubbing her forehead. She was slightly annoyed that James managed to aggravate Ash into fighting, but that didn't matter. "Besides, we have a dance to get to tonight, so let's get this over with. Prepare for trouble."

"Make it double," James said while smirking. He was confident in the plans this time, as was Jessie. Jessie closed her eyes and crossed her arms.

"To protect the world from devastation…"

"To unite all people within our nation…"

"To denounce the evils of truth and love." Ash rolled his eyes and started to fume, growing more irritated and annoyed as time went by. He had heard this motto several times before and he was not too thrilled to hear it again.

"To extend our reach to the stars above."

"Jessie!"

"James."

"Team Rocket, blast off at the speed of light!"

"Surrender now, or prepare to fight."

"I hope you're done now," A voice said. The group looked over to see Brock walking toward them, he didn't seem too happy to see them. Jessie and James hadn't planned on seeing Brock, but that really didn't matter. Ash started to attack again, but the substance James injected into him started to work, the tranquilizer was beginning to put Ash to sleep. Ash blinked and his eyes grew heavy, he groaned and started to fall back. "Ash!" Brock ran toward him but stopped when he felt a sharp pain in his arm, he grabbed his arm and looked over to see Meowth pointing the tranquilizer gun at him. "D-Damn you…"

"Sorry, we weren't exactly planning on you showing up," Meowth said while watching Brock fall to the ground. "Come on, grab them before the girl shows up." Jessie and James nodded and grabbed Ash, Brock and Pikachu, they ran into the large machine and closed the door. "Hurry, get to the control room! James, lets get these guys to the holding area." James nodded as he and Meowth started dragging Ash to the holding area, they figured they'd just tie Brock up.

Outside of the flying machine, preferably a very fast blimp, Dawn and her Pokémon showed up. She had seen Team Rocket capture her friends and wanted to help, but the machine was already getting off the ground. "Oh no you don't, you're not getting away with them!" Dawn shouted. She pulled out a pokeball and sent out one of her flying Pokémon that she captured recently, it was a Pidgeot.

"Quick Pidgeot, after them!" Dawn climbed onto Pidgeot's back and flew up to the level of the blimp, her eyes narrowed when her gaze met Jessie's. "Give me back my friends!"

"Oh look at the time, I'd love to stay and chat, but I have to go!" Jessie said while chuckling nervously. _"Sorry Dawn, but we just can't take you with us where we're going."_ Jessie shifted one of the gears and the blimp took off at an amazing speed, surprising Dawn. James entered the control room and placed his hand on Jessie's shoulder, smiling softly at her. She looked up and smiled at him. "Hey James, I'm hoping this works out well. We do have a problem though…" She looked in a mirror they attached on the outside and frowned, Dawn was still following them. "Dawn's chasing after us."

"Oh, that can't be good," James said while groaning slightly. They were not expecting Dawn to follow, but that was fine. "Can this thing go any faster?" He sighed and walked toward the door. "I'm going to check on Ash and Pikachu, Brock has been tied up."

"Not too tight, right?"

"Don't worry Jessie, it's snug but not tight enough to cause a lot of pain." He opened the door and walked toward the very back of the blimp. He stopped in the middle and looked out a window to see Dawn flying near the blimp, she looked in and narrowed her eyes. _"Damn it, she's persistent. It's not like we're up to no good."_

"I'll find a way in there!" Dawn shouted. James blinked and shrugged his shoulders while continuing to walk toward the area that Ash and Pikachu were. They had pretty tough material built up around the entire thing so it wouldn't be easy to rip anything apart. If anything, Dawn might be flying for a long time. Pidgeot would probably get tired, and it was a long drop. If she didn't give up, they would have to let her in. He walked in the back room to see Ash standing in a tube, he had awakened and was now banging on the tube.

"You won't be breaking out." James walked toward the tube that Pikachu was in, the little Pokémon was trying to shock his way out of the container. "Shock proof, you're staying in there until we reach our destination."

"You won't get away with this!" Ash exclaimed while hitting the container once more. James sighed and slowly shook his head, Ash knew nothing.

"I think we will, I mean it isn't like we're trying to capture Pikachu this time." Ash raised his eyebrow and Pikachu made a confused noise. James smirked and crossed his arms over, he figured it might be good to change the subject. "So tell me, what was all that about out there? The whole trying to hit me…I believe you said something about Misty." Ash lowered his hands and clenched them up, he growled and narrowed his eyes angrily.

"You better not do anything to her! Leave her out of this!"

"Oh, well I'm afraid we can't actually do that."

"Damn it, do you hear me! Leave Misty alone, if you do anything to her, or if you _have_ done anything to her, you're going to pay, I promise!"

"Whatever you say, catch you later brat." James waved his hand through the air and gave a small sigh. He looked to Ash and narrowed his eyes slightly. "You know, I'd follow Jessie anywhere. If she said she wanted to quit Team Rocket, which is my life, I would do it. I'd give up my greatest desire for her…Remember this, Pokémon may come and go, but true love is only one time." Ash raised his eyebrow in confusion, wondering what that had to do anything. James turned around and left the room. He glanced out the window and didn't see Dawn anywhere. _"Huh, I guess she gave up."_

-NEW SCENE-

Misty stepped outside of her gym and sighed as she looked around, she was pretty bored with the town, but she couldn't do a thing about that. She looked toward the bike shop and chuckled, remembering how she met Ash so long ago. He had taken her bike to save his Pokémon, then he offered to fix her bike and finally did. She missed him more than anything, the talk she had with Jessie the other day had actually helped comfort her some. She needed that talk because she had been thinking about Ash more lately than she could remember.

"Ash, what are you up to these days?" Misty asked out loud. She sat down on the steps of her gym and pulled her legs to her chest. She looked into the sky and smiled as the sun beat down upon her, if anything, she could at least enjoy the beauty of the day. She looked over at a sign that was placed next to a plant, it was the "away" sign, telling that she was at the lake. That was usually where she went when she wasn't at the gym.

She picked up the sign and placed it on the doorknob, she locked the door and walked over to her bike. She got on and started pedaling toward the lake, she figured she would take the rest of the day off, there wasn't any reason to stay at the gym when everyone except her would be getting ready for the dance later that night. As she pedaled out of the city, all the residents looked up into the sky as a large shadow covered the streets. They stared in shock and awe as a giant blimp landed on the ground, a girl was clinging to the side of it, trying not to fall off.

Dawn groaned closed her eyes as the smoke and dirt stopped swirling around, she quickly leapt off of the blimp and landed on the ground. _"Damn, I couldn't ever get in…"_ She thought as she dusted her clothes off. She looked over as the blimp's door opened. Meowth spotted Dawn and narrowed his eyes, he quickly grabbed for the tranquilizer gun, but Jessie quickly grabbed it away. He looked up to see James shaking his head with disapproval. Next to James stood Ash, Brock and Pikachu, they were free from their holds. Dawn's eyes widened and she quickly ran up to Ash and Brock. "Ash! Brock!"

"Dawn, how did you get here?" Brock asked while raising an eyebrow, he knew Dawn never got inside of the blimp. Ash looked from Dawn and out into the city, his jaw dropped and his eyes widened.

"I followed them on Pidgeot, and now I'm going to teach them a lesson!" Dawn pulled out her pokeball but Ash quickly placed his hand out in front of her, signaling her to stop. During the ride, Jessie and James had explained to him that they weren't going to do anything bad, but they didn't say they were taking him to Cerulean city.

"Misty…she should be here," Ash said under his breath. He took a step forward and started walking toward the gym in front of them. "They brought me to Misty? I don't…" Brock smiled lightly and Dawn raised her eyebrow, the team rocket members were grinning widely as well. Ash quickly ran toward the gym door, anxious to see Misty after so long. "Misty, I'm back! Finally, I'm-" He grabbed the doorknob but the door wouldn't open, he frowned and turned around. "It's locked…"

"Okay, so maybe she's not in the gym, she might be back soon," Brock said as he stepped next to Ash and patted his shoulder.

"Are you kidding? Who knows when she'll be back! This time, Brock, this time I'm not leaving without telling her…" Dawn still looked confused, but she did have some idea what was going on. She was just surprised that Team Rocket was trying to reunite Ash and Misty. She crossed her arms and walked toward the two guys, she looked at the door and chuckled lightly.

"Hey guys, there's a sign on the door saying that the gym leader is at the lake." Ash blinked and looked at the sign, blushing at the fact that he had failed to see it. Yet, it was also understandable, he was just too excited to notice it.

"Of course, Misty always loves the lake!" Ash exclaimed as he slapped his forehead. The only trouble was the lake was pretty far off, it would take some time to get there. He didn't want to take so long to get there, there had to be a faster way to get to their destination. He looked over to see a person walking to their car. Upon closer inspection, he saw that it was Officer Jenny.

He quickly hurried over to Officer Jenny and clasped his hands together, surprising Brock and Dawn. "Please, Officer Jenny, I need to see someone. I think I'm responsible for breaking her heart, so I need to see her immediately or else you can lock me up and throw away the key." Just then, Brock rushed over and clasped Jenny's hands in his. Ash stood up and rubbed the back of his head nervously as Brock attempted to flirt with Jenny.

"Officer Jenny, I've been real naughty, please lock me up and throw away the key!" Brock exclaimed in a pleading voice. Jenny raised her eyebrow and sighed as she slowly closed her eyes.

"The boy in the hat, you may ride in my patrol car," Jenny said in a quiet voice. She opened her eyes and looked toward Brock. "As for you, you're going to have to ride with my partner." She pointed to another patrol car and Brock looked over to see a buff man sitting in the driver's seat, grinning and waving. Brock sighed and slowly walked over toward the car.

"I really have no luck." Ash slowly shook his head and nearly jumped back when Brock placed his hands on his shoulders. "Ash, do me a favor as my best friend and tell me everything you can about Officer Jenny's vehicle!"

"Uh, I kind of have other things on my mind right now, Brock, I can't really do an investigation of the woman's car with Misty on my mind," Ash stated in a calm voice.

"Oh, you're right…" Brock slumped and continued walking to the car.

-NEWSCENE-

Misty lay on the grass and stared up at the sunset sky, it was beautiful. _"The sunset is truly perfect to watch,"_ she thought as she sat up and looked toward the shimmering waters of the lake. The wind blew through her hair as she slowly stood up, she walked over to her bicycle and sighed. "I see the same sight every day, the sunset just doesn't mean a lot to me anymore, despite it still being beautiful to watch." She started to get onto her bike but stopped when she heard a distant noise. The noise was growing closer, it sounded a lot like police sirens.

"I wonder what's going on…" Soon a few police cars stopped near the lake, surprising her. After all, she was the only one there, surely she didn't do anything wrong. She had been going to the lake for years, so she knew it wasn't off limits. She walked a little closer to the cars, still not seeing anyone inside. One of the two cars opened the door and revealed Jessie and James. "Hey, what are you two doing in the police cars? Did the cops catch you trying to take yet _another_ Pokémon?"

"Oh ha, ha," Jessie replied while crossing her arms and smirking. "Anyway, I told you I'd pay you back for the dress, didn't I? James and I nabbed you a little thank you gift." She placed her elbow on top of the car and shook her head while giving an exasperated sigh. "And of course, when I show up at your door to deliver the gift, you're nowhere in sight." She slapped her forehead and rolled her eyes. "Man, we Team Rocket people have to learn to get our timing right!" Misty laughed lightly and Jessie gave her a kind smile. "Anyway, let's let 'em out one by one."

Misty raised her eyebrow as Jessie looked over to the other patrol cars. First, Dawn stepped out of one and smiled at her. "Hi, I'm-"

"Yeah, don't talk." Dawn silenced and crossed her arms, she wasn't sure why Jessie had just rebuked her anyway. After all, what had she done wrong? Misty didn't recognize her very well, so she figured that wasn't who Jessie got for her. "Yeah, that girl was a stowaway, she's not even supposed to be here." Dawn recoiled and Jessie shook her head with embarrassment, but at least the plan worked for the most part.

"Hey Misty," Brock said as he stepped out of the car. Misty's eyes widened and her heartbeat started to increase. If Brock was there, then did that mean Ash was nearby? "Long time no see, right?" She nodded her head and glanced at the cars with a shocked expression on her face. "Well, Officer Jenny just arrested someone, I think it was for heartbreak."

"Okay, that was cheesy!" Brock looked over at Jessie and narrowed his eyes, the woman just shrugged in reply. "I'm just saying, it sounded a little corny."

"Brock, Jessie, could you two be quiet," Misty said in a quiet and nervous tone of voice. Her hands gripped the handlebars of her bike as one door slowly opened. She could feel her heart pounding, wishing for what had only ever come to her in dreams. It was then that she saw the yellow mouse bound out of the car and finally Ash stepped out of the vehicle. She gasped lightly and Ash gave her a slight smile. "A-Ash, what are you doing here?" He started to walk toward her, keeping his eyes locked with hers.

"Well, Team Rocket came for me," Ash replied in a soft voice. "I've missed you so much, Misty."

"I can't believe you're here, I wasn't ready for this. I don't even look good, not that you'd care or anything, I'm just saying!" Ash smiled as Misty fidgeted slightly and looked over herself, embarrassed.

"I think you look great, Misty. In fact, I think you look beautiful." Misty gasped and paused as she lifted her gaze toward Ash.

"What did you say?" She blushed as Ash took a step closer.

"Something I should have said a long time ago…I think you look beautiful, I've always thought you looked beautiful.

"I don't even know how to respond to that."

"Misty, you know, I haven't ever forgotten you." Ash took Misty's hand in his and held his gaze into her eyes. "Ever since we first met, I thought you were obnoxious and a girl who constantly interrupted my train of thought. Now, even today, you still pop into my mind and distract me from everything else. Day in and day out, you are all I ever can think about."

"What about the girls?" Ash raised his eyebrow and Misty gave a soft sigh. "The girls you've talked about in the letters. Dawn, May, and even some others…"

"Well, that girl over there is Dawn, but she's like a sister to me." Misty looked over as Dawn smiled and waved her hand in the air. "May was a pretty good friend too I guess, but no girl has ever done what you can do." She tilted her head and stared at Ash with a questioning look, he smiled and softly kissed her forehead, causing her to blush more. "You can take my breath away, my heart, and everything I know. I should have said what I'm about to say years ago, but I was just too foolish. I love you Misty, I want you back by my side."

"Ash…" She felt her heart start pounding harder, she couldn't believe what was going on, it was her dream come true. She wanted to go along with him, but the only problem was that she couldn't. She wasn't able to leave her gym, it was impossible. She closed her eyes and looked away, causing Ash to raise his eyebrows as if anticipating a major problem. "I love you too, I always have, and as much as I want to be with you…I can't."

"Well why not?" His eyes were wide and all of the observers stared on while holding their breaths.

"I can't leave my gym…I'm sorry Ash. I want to leave it, I really do, but there's no way I can without angering so many people. Also, I could never find someone else to run it on such short notice." She let go of Ash's hand and he let it fall to the side, he turned his head down slightly as Misty stepped passed him. She looked over at Jessie and remembered her prior conversation with her. "I-I can't do it, I can't tear you away from your dream."

"What?" Misty's eyes were starting to tear up as Ash turned to face her. She moved her eyes over the observers and saw how sorrowful everyone was looking, they were all anticipating something good coming out of it, but they failed to see what was the major factor hindering the two. Ash wanted to chase his dream of becoming the world's greatest Pokémon trainer while Misty could not leave her gym or her city. Ash would be traveling all over the place from region to region while Misty stayed. Her eyes met with Jessie's and she let out an exasperated sigh.

"You want to be the world's greatest Pokémon trainer, and I really don't know how long that's going to take. Five years of hurt is too much…I can't go with you so I don't want to be hurt anymore." She rubbed her arm and looked toward the ground, Ash lifted his hand up then put it back to his side. He looked toward Pikachu and slowly closed his hand as his companion responded with a sad and confused 'Pika' sound. "There is no way to be together and I'm not about to ask you to stay..." Ash closed his eyes and sighed, swallowing his pride.

"What are you saying, Misty!"

"I'm just saying-" Ash placed his hand on Misty's shoulder and turned her around to look into her eyes. She was crying, it was as if her soul was shattering the more they went. She silenced her tears as she gazed into his determined and fierce eyes. He remembered the words James had told him while on the blimp, about Jessie and all of the other advice that he hadn't really asked for.

"Misty, I want to be with you. I don't care what you say, I _need_ you. I'm nothing without you!"

"Well them maybe you're just going to have to learn to be without me. I have to do that myself, I've been trying to get used to it for five years now. You didn't want to stay, you chose to leave…" She turned her head away and tried to pull back, but Ash moved his arms around her waist and locked her close to him, refusing to let her go.

"Misty, that isn't true. Now you look at me, it isn't true that I wanted to leave you. If you had said the word then, if you had only told me not to leave, I wouldn't have left. I would have stayed with you because I cared about you. I cared the world about you then and I still do now, no dream can possibly be as good as the real thing. Pokémon can come and go, Misty, but true love can only come once."

"What do you mean? It's your life dream…"

"Misty, my dream is to have a great family and a wonderful wife. Sure I would like to become the greatest Pokémon trainer in the world, but some things are more important, like true happiness. I can't be happy if I don't have the heart of the woman I love, that's what I learned not so long ago. Every time I've come near death even, I could only think, 'what would Misty think?' I could only figure that life wasn't complete if I wasn't with you. Pikachu's not going anywhere, the Pokémon of the world aren't going there. However, I know that if I don't have your heart, I wouldn't have anything if I ever even _did_ come close to the world's greatest Pokémon trainer."

"But you…"

"I'm not done." Ash's eyes grew more determined but filled with only love. "The title of greatest trainer will also come and go, I'd probably spend many lonely years just trying to keep that title to myself. I can always find good challenges for Pokémon battles wherever, I don't _have_ to be the greatest trainer ever. Just say it, Misty…say what you and I both know you want to say. Say what everyone here wants you to say." Misty's eyes shimmered as a single tear left her eyes, she just wanted Ash to be happy. She loved him, she didn't want to tear him away from what would make him happy.

"What would make you happy?"

"Being with you…" She closed her eyes and exhaled slowly, trying to calm the beating of her heart.

"Okay then…I want you to make the decision, because I refuse to make it for you. I love you, I want you to do what will make you happiest. What will that be, staying here with me or becoming number one?" Ash smiled and lifted his hand to brush a strand of Misty's hair back.

"What would make me happiest? I would be happiest if I held your heart in my hands, I would be happiest if I was with you. Would it be okay if I stayed with you?"

"You're that willing to give up your greatest dream…for me?"

"It would mean nothing to me, but it would still mean the world to know that I really am number one, and I am. I may be number one in your heart, and that is all that matters, my biggest dream is then fulfilled through you."

"Ash Ketchum, that is the dumbest, but sweetest thing that I've ever heard you say to me. You really mean it?"

"Every word…"

"What about your friends?" Ash looked over at Brock and Dawn, they smiled at him and shrugged, they were just happy for him.

"I'll manage," Dawn said with a small smile. She didn't really care, her dream wasn't dependent on Ash being there. Of course, she would definitely want to remain friends if she could. "We'll probably meet again."

"You know I'll be around," Brock said with a wide grin. Ash chuckled lightly and looked back into Misty's gaze.

"I'm yours now," He stated. "Would you go with me to the dance?"

"I would love to!" She smiled and let the tears leave her eyes once more, though they were not tears of sorrow, but tears of joy that finally Ash had returned to her. This time, they would not part from each other.

* * *

I hope you enjoyed that, please review, it makes me feel good to know people like my story. I enjoyed writing it, and can only hope you did as well. Let me know if you think this should have a sequel to it, or at least a second chapter.


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